Metro Link (Fort Lauderdale, FL) will demonstrate a new software solution which provides residential gateway and appliance connectivity functions and supports the Universal Plug 'n Play (UPnP) standard, at the upcoming Consumer Electronics Show (January 6-9, Las Vegas). In the demo at Aegis' booth, Metro Link's Metro-EnableWorks software enables connectivity between an Embedded Linux based Residential… Gateway system and Aegis' high-end electronic Home Management System (HMS), and provides UPnP support. The Aegis HMS is an easy-to-use appliance that gives homeowners access to home security, heating, lighting, sprinklers, garage doors, and other home monitoring and control functions.

“UPnP (Universal Plug 'n Play) is the newest and most universally promising standard for connecting appliances with multiple networking technologies,” said Rob Lembree, Metro Link's Technical Director of Metro-EnableWorks. “Metro Link actively supports this new standard and is excited to be working with Aegis to provide UPnP compatibility to existing devices that utilize other standards.”

Metro Link's Metro-EnableWorks software is intended for use in residential gateways, set-top boxes, and other next generation Internet appliance designs. In addition to offering support for UPnP, the product also provides interconnectivity between UPnP and a number of other popular device connectivity standards, including OSGi, HAVi, and VHN. Support will also be included for legacy technologies like X-10 and RS232 (serial). These popular but divergent standards were developed independently by various industry groups to support the connectivity requirements of numerous devices throughout the home, including intelligent appliances, computers, audio/video, heating/air conditioning, etc. Each has its own unique protocol, however, resulting in barriers to interoperability. Metro-EnableWorks uses multi-protocol translation to enable communication among devices with differing protocols.